
The indigenous communities of Yakye Axa and Sawhoyamaxa continue to die of hunger
The Yakye Axa and Sawhoyamaxa communities in Paraguay have been deprived of access to their land and to water. The members of these communities are forced to live under precarious conditions. On 17 June 2005 and 29 March 2006 the Inter-American Court of Human Rights ruled with regard to the two cases that the land be restored and additional measures be taken to assure the communities' subsistence. The State has not implemented these things so far. The members of the communities continue to show signs of undernourishment and deteriorating health, some even dying because of the State's inaction.
Background
The indigenous community of Yakye Axa - made up of 55 families - and the Sawhoyamaxa community - made up of 100 families - have traditionally inhabited el Chaco Paraguayo. Both communities have faced serious problems with regard to the possession of the land that ancestrally belongs to them. In particular, in the 1930s there was an increase in the number of non-indigenous settlers in the region, which was caused by the communities' land being transeferred to private third parties. These new proprietors divided up the land without recognising the rights of the indigenous communities. The proprietors exploited the indigenous people as workers and put them under precarious conditions by limiting the their access to the land and disregarding the importance of the resources for the subsistence of their culture.
At that time, the members of the Yakye Axa community mainly worked in Loma Verde hacienda, from where they were forced to move towards the el Estribo settlement in 1986, trying to escape the working conditions they had been put under. However, the move did not improve the situation for the Yakye Axa community and they continued to live under precarious conditions, suffering from hunger and malnourishment. In 1996 the community tried to return to the land they claim as their ancestral territory, but access to the land was denied to them. Therefore they were forced to settle right there, on the edge of the highway the road that links Pozo Colorado to Concepción. The families are forced to live in extreme conditions of poverty because they cannot access the land that belongs to them to produce food or to hunt. On the other side, the members of the Sawhoyamaxa community are scattered over several settlements that are well located in diverse smallholdings in the zone, without assured income or subsistence. In 1997 the community reorganized itself to strengthen its fight, settling in front of the land they wanted to reclaim and at the side of the road that links the town of Pozo Colorado to Concepción, in a situation similar to the one of the Yakye Axa community. The private owner of the land, that should be expropriated, is German.
In both cases the communities obtained rulings against the Paraguayan State from the Inter-American Court on Human Rights. In the Sawhoyamaxa case, the State was even convicted of neglect and found responsible for the deaths of 18 children. The deadline for the restitution of the land to the Yakye Axa community expired on 13 July this year. The deadline for the restitution of the land to the Sawhoyamaxa community expires in May 2009. Despite the rulings of the IACHR, they have still not been complied with. People continue to die of diseases related to a lack of access to the basic resources. In the case of the Yakye Axa community, 8 more people have died since the ruling was passed. This is due to the precarious living conditions which the community are faced with and the failure of the adoption of measures to overcome this situation. The number of victims from the Sawhoyamaxa community has increased to 13 since the ruling was passed.
FIAN Mandate
The Paraguayan State ratified the ILO Convention No. 169 concerning indigenous and tribal peoples in independent countries, as well as the UN Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. In doing so, the Parguayan State must respect, protect and guarantee these rights, including the right to feed. Paraguay must therefore also protect and guarantee the right to property and tenency of the land where indigenous communities have traditionally lived and the land that is necessary for their subsistence.
Call For Action
It is important to send letters immediately to the President of the Republic of Paraguay, politely requesting that the implementation of the rulings in the cases of the Yakye Axa and Sawhoyamaxa communities be sped up. The deadline fort he implementation of the first ruling expired more than a month ago. The deadline for the second ruling expires in May next year, nevertheless the restitution of the land has not taken place, neither has the ruling been implemented.
0813UPGY
Respetado señor Presidente:
Por medio de la presente me comunico con Ud. en relación a los casos Yakye Axa y Sawhoyamaxa, que habitan en el Chaco paraguayo, cuyos miembros viven una continua situación de violación de sus derechos humanos. Desde 1996 y 1997 las comunidades viven en el área de las tierras que reivindican, Estancia Loma Verde y Estancia Michi y Retiro Santa Elisa, al borde de la carretera que conecta a Concepción y Pozo Colorado. En ambos casos la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos adoptó decisiones judiciales para proteger de los derechos de las víctimas, ordenando al Estado la restitución de las tierras ancestrales, el suministro de bienes y servicios básicos para su subsistencia, la adopción de medidas de reconocimiento y de otras para evitar la repetición de las violaciones. No obstante, en incumplimiento de sus obligaciones adquiridas bajo la Convención Interamericana de Derechos Humanos el Estado paraguayo se encuentra en mora de cumplir los fallos. En el caso Yakye Axa el término de 3 establecido por CIDH para el cumplimiento de la decisión ha vencido el 13 de julio pasado. En el caso Sawhoyamaxa vencerá el 29 de mayo del 2009. A causa de este incumplimiento las comunidades siguen viviendo en situaciones de violación. En el caso Sawhoyamaxa incluso han muerto a causa de la reticencia por lo menos 13 personas más después de la notificación de la sentencia debido a la negligencia estatal.
Las tierras reivindicadas por Yakye Axa se encuentran bajo la propiedad de la compañía Agroganadera Loma Verde S.A., cuyo representante legal es la familia Domínguez Dibb. Las reivindicadas por Sawhoyamaxa se encuentran bajo titularidad de las empresas Kansol S.A. y Roswell S.A. cuyo representante es el alemán Heribert Roedle. La carencia de tierra impide a los miembros de las comunidades producir los alimentos que requieren para subsistir.
De acuerdo con las obligaciones adquiridas por el Estado Paraguayo a la luz de la Convención Interamericana de Derechos Humanos, el Convención 169 de la OIT y el PIDESC el Estado de Paraguay debía respetar, proteger y garantizar estos derechos, entre ellos el derecho a la alimentación. En atención a lo anterior le solicito respetuosamente cumplir las sentencias de la CIDH. Para el efecto sugiero la creación de un grupo interinstitucional que tenga a su cargo la implementación de las sentencias, con un cronograma de trabajo definido y coordinado con otras instituciones públicas competentes para la ejecución de las medidas concretas, con la participación de los miembros de la comunidad que ésta designe y de los representantes convencionales de las víctimas en el grupo interinstitucional.
Le agradezco Informar a FIAN sobre los avances logrados y las medidas tomadas en este sentido.
Cordialmente,
Honorable President:
I am writing to you with regard to the current critical situation of the Yakye Axa and Sawhoyamaxa communities living in the Chaco Paraguayo, whose members live under conditions where their human rights are continuously violated. From 1996 to 1997 the communities lived on the area of land that they claimed, the smallholdings of Loma Verde and Michi and Retiro Santa Elisa, on the edge of the road that connects Concepción and Pozo Colorado. In both cases the Inter-American Court of Human Rights passed judgements in order to protect the rights of the victims, ordering the State to give the ancestral land back to the communities, provide them with commodities and basic services for their subsistence, adopt the recommended measures and others to avoid the violations happening again. However, the Paraguayan State has not fulfilled its obligations as directed by the Inter-American Convention of Human Rights, which has directs the the rulings be implemented. In the case of the Yakye Axa community the first of 3 deadlines established by IACHR in order to implement the rulings expired on 13 July this year. In the Sawhoyamaxa case the deadline expires on 29 May 2009. Due to the failure to implement the judgements the communities continue to live in situations where their rights are being violated. In the Sawhoyamaxa case 13 people have died since the judgement was passed due to State neglect. The land claimed by the Yakye Axa community is under ownership of the Agroganadera Loma Verde S.A. company, whose legal representative is the family Domínguez Dibb. The land claimed by the Sawhoyamaxa community is under ownership of the Kansol S.A. and Roswell S.A. companies whose representative is the German, Heribert Roedle. The lack of land prevents the members of the communities from producing the food that they require for subsistence. In agreement with the obligations accorded by the Paraguayan State in light of the Inter-American Convention of Human Rights, the ILO Convention 169 and ICESCR, the State of Paraguay has to respect, to protect and to guarantee these rights, including the right to food. With regard to the right to food, I respectfully urge you to implement the rulings of the IACHR. As a result, I suggest creating an interinstitutional group that is in charge of implementing the rulings, with a clear timetable and coordinates with other competent public institutions and with the participation of appointed members of the community and suitable reperesentatives of the victims to implement concrete measures.
I would like to thank you in advance for informing FIAN about the achievements that you make any measures you take with regard to these issues.
Yours sincerely,
Fernando Lugo
Enrique González Quintana
Margarita Mbywangi